Michael Bolton reveals he has an incurable brain cancer and is facing ‘a reality of mortality’
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Michael Bolton has glioblastoma, a treatment-resistant brain cancer that was behind the emergency surgery he had 16 months ago.
After that surgery, during which a tumor was removed in its entirety from his brain, the “How Am I Supposed to Live Without You?” singer stayed quiet about the details. Now he’s talking about having a “heightened sense of appreciation” and making the best of a bad situation.
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“Succumbing to the challenge is not an option,” Bolton told People, revealing his diagnosis in an exclusive interview published Wednesday. “You’re really quickly drawn into a duel. I guess that’s the way you find out what you’re made of.”
Bolton’s daughter Taryn described the symptoms that led to his diagnosis. First came nausea and some balance issues during a November 2023 charity performance on Richard Branson’s private Necker Island, she told People. That was attributed to stress and exhaustion from a nonstop work schedule. But it wasn’t weird enough to raise alarms.
Then, after Thanksgiving, the family went bowling and Bolton repeatedly tried to bowl out of turn. He also fell out of his chair. That’s when the family knew something was off. “When you look back at everything together … We missed so many things,” Taryn told the outlet. The diagnosis and brain surgery came soon after that.
Bolton has been out of the limelight since right after that December 2023 surgery, which was followed by a second one the next month after he developed an infection. His chemotherapy and radiation treatments ended last October, he told the outlet, and he has chosen not to receive a prognosis.
Michael Bolton had a serious health scare over the holidays when doctors found a brain tumor that required emergency surgery. He’ll be taking time off to heal.
“I want to keep going. I feel there’s still a lot to do on the fight side,” the 72-year-old singer said. “I got a title for a song: ‘Ain’t Going Down Without a Fight.’”
Glioblastoma is the most aggressive form of brain and spinal cord cancer, according to the Glioblastoma Foundation. The average survival time for people who get treatment is 15 months after diagnosis, according to the foundation, compared with three to six months for those who do not. While research on new treatments has been promising, according to the Mayo Clinic, the condition has no cure. It’s most often diagnosed when people are in their mid-60s.
As he spends time at his Connecticut home with his three adult daughters and six grandchildren, he told People, he has experienced “a reality of mortality.”
“Suddenly a new light has gone on that raises questions,” Bolton said, “including ‘Am I doing the best that I can do with my time?’”
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He said he still meditates daily, and now works with a voice therapist and physical therapist. He still takes voice lessons and golfs whenever he can. But that recognition of his mortality likely hit him around his initial emergency surgery.
“It is always the hardest thing for me to ever disappoint my fans or postpone a show, but have no doubt I am working hard to accelerate my recovery and get back to performing soon,” Bolton said in January 2024 when he revealed his first surgery and announced a “temporary” break from touring.
“I am beyond grateful for all the love and support you have so generously shown me through the years,” he said. “Know that I’m keeping your positive messages in my heart.”
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